The Changing Face of Modern Families
9 total works
What happens when a family has nowhere to live? Some families have lost their houses because of financial difficulties or natural disasters and don't have the resources to find new homes. Their lives become a struggle to meet their basic needs. Some live in shelters, some with friends or relatives, some on the streets or in their cars. Many have trouble staying together. Can children growing up in these families really survive and have good lives? Are there good things these family members have learned from their situations? This book tells the stories of several families who have experienced homelessness and tries to answer some of those questions.
Same-sex marriage is an often-debated topic these days. When children are added to the picture, the issue can become even more controversial. Does growing up in families with gay or lesbian parents harm children? Do they struggle with more issues as adults than those who were raised in more traditional families? These are some of the questions this book addresses. The families in this book have thought about issues like these. Except for those families who already had children when they came out as being homosexual, they have had to go through artificial insemination or adoption in order to have children. These families are intentional and they think a lot about how to give their children the best possible lives. What are the good things about growing up in a family with same-sex parents? What are the difficulties? The families in this book try to answer just those questions.
What kind of challenges do multiracial families face? What issues do families deal with when the mother and father are of different races and the children are a mixture of the two? What about when the parents are of one race but have adopted children of another? Some of their challenges are the same as those facing families who are the same race, of course, but there are others that arise because of the families' multiracial nature. Do family members have trouble understanding what each other are going through because they do not share racial background? What about culture: should they celebrate their different races' holidays separately or blend them together to create new traditions? These are the kinds of questions the families in this book frequently face. What they have learned from their experiences can help us as well as we relate to people of different cultures.
Over half a million children in the United States are in foster care. Some of them have been removed from their parents because of abuse, neglect, or abandonment. Some of their parents have died or been put into prison. When foster parents take in these children, they become part of a family. Sometimes this family has nearly as many problems as the child's original family, but sometimes it can be a place where the child learns about love and belonging. Foster families, both the parents and children, face many challenges but they can also be extremely rewarding. The families in this book have had both good and bad experiences, but they have all learned things from what they have faced.
The United States has a long history of immigration. For centuries, people have been coming to this country in search of new lives. When they arrive, both today and in the past, the children usually adapt to the new country first, before their parents. This creates a unique set of challenges for the family as they live with two cultures and, often, two languages. The families in this book have experienced these challenges and have dealt with problems that came from adjusting to a new place and a new way of life. They have struggled, done some things wrong and some things right, and they have learned much about themselves, their families, and their cultures.
In 2005, 6 million children were being raised by their grandparents. Sometimes, their grandchildren's parents had died, sometimes they were in prison, and sometimes they just couldn't cope with raising children. When grandparents take in their grandchildren to raise, they have some difficulties most families don't have. They're older, for one thing, and they also have to deal with their own children and that relationship. But they have the wisdom and experience they've gained from raising one set of children already, and this can help. The families in this book have had both good and bad experiences, but they have learned a great deal through them.
When a teenager becomes pregnant, what are her options? If she decides to keep the baby, what kind of life will the baby have? What will the mother's life be like? And what about teenage fathers? This book talks about many of these issues and tells the story of some teen parent families. The people in this book are very aware of the difficulties involved in being a teen-parent family. They know how hard it can be. But they can also tell you the ways their situation have made them stronger, what they have learned, and what you can learn from them.